Crotalaria trichotoma |
Crotalaria ochroleuca |
|
---|---|---|
curara pea, West Indian rattlebox |
slender leaf rattlebox |
|
Habit | Herbs annual or short-lived perennial. | Herbs annual or short-lived perennial. |
Stems | suffrutescent basally, erect, 75–250 cm, strigose to strigillose, hairs tightly appressed. |
erect, 70–250 cm, strigose. |
Leaves | 3-foliolate; stipules absent; leaflet blades elliptic to elliptic-lanceolate or elliptic-oblanceolate, 40–100(–140) mm, length 3–4.5 times width, surfaces strigose abaxially, glabrous adaxially. |
3-foliolate; stipules absent; leaflet blades linear to linear-lanceolate or elliptic-lanceolate, 50–130(–180) mm, length 7–10 times width, surfaces strigose abaxially, glabrous adaxially. |
Racemes | 10–50-flowered, terminal, subterminal, or lateral, 10–40 cm; bracts persistent, linear-subulate. |
4–12-flowered, terminal or subterminal, 15–40 cm; bracts persistent, linear-triangular, minute. |
Flowers | calyx broadly cylindrical, basally truncate and deflexed against pedicel, 4–6 mm (length less than width), lobes triangular-lanceolate, glabrous or sparsely strigillose; corolla yellow with prominent reddish lines, each wing with a purple spot at base, 12–15 mm. |
calyx broadly cylindrical, truncate basally, 4–6 mm, lobes triangular, shiny-glabrous; corolla pale yellow with prominent reddish purple lines, 18–20 mm. |
Legumes | 30–45 × 7–12 mm, sparsely to densely strigose to strigose-sericeous. |
straight, (40–)50–70 × (10–)15–20 mm, sparsely strigose or glabrescent. |
2n | = 16. |
|
Crotalaria trichotoma |
Crotalaria ochroleuca |
|
Phenology | Flowering probably year-round. | Flowering Apr–Oct. |
Habitat | Roadsides. | Roadsides, ditches, prairie swales, sandy fields. |
Elevation | 0–10 m. (0–0 ft.) | 0–10 m. (0–0 ft.) |
Distribution |
FL; Africa [Introduced in North America; introduced also in Central America (Nicaragua), South America (Argentina, Peru), Asia (China, Java, Sri Lanka, Sumatra), Indian Ocean Islands, Pacific Islands, Australia] |
AL; FL; GA; LA; MS; NC; SC; Africa [Introduced in North America; introduced also in South America (Brazil), Asia (China), Pacific Islands (Papua New Guinea), Australia] |
Discussion | In the flora area, Crotalaria trichotoma has been found only in Miami-Dade County. R. M. Polhill (1982) stated that Crotalaria trichotoma does not belong in the genus Crotalaria, without stating its placement elsewhere. In contrast, D. Isely (1998) observed that C. trichotoma resembles the common C. pallida in flower but that the latter has wider leaflets and caducous bracts; the similarity of C. trichotoma to many other crotalarias is confirmed here. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Crotalaria ochroleuca has often been identified in the United States as C. intermedia Kotschy or C. brevidens Bentham var. intermedia (Kotschy) Polhill. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 11. | FNA vol. 11. |
Parent taxa | ||
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | C. usaramoensis, C. zanzibarica | |
Name authority | Bojer: Ann. Sci. Nat., Bot., sér. 2, 4: 265. (1835) | G. Don: Gen. Hist. 2: 138. (1832) |
Web links |